The Trek!

The Trek

How can I find all the words to begin to explain all that has transpired in the last two weeks of my life physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally!? I didn’t think it was possible to change and grow so much in just two weeks time, but it goes to be reminded that with God anything is possible.
So, this is how I begin my tale of my adventures: “Oh be careful what prayers you pray, because God is in the business of answering them!”
Friday, June 25th, we hit the road to drive to Melrose, Scotland to start the St. Cuthbert’s Way Trek, early that morning. There were 11 of us doing this Trek: John Wilson (He and his wife Sarah are the DTS leaders…however his wife didn’t go as she had to of course stay with their 14month old son) then there was Danielle-“Ding”, Geoffry, Theo (Celtic Way Intern), Anna (Staff: Head of Kitchen and Internship), and then of course the DTS students (in order of age: oldest to youngest:
Corbin, Kelsy, Beka, Cerina, and Sarah(British)) So, we hiked about 8 miles that first day and found an awesome campsite right on the trail in a nook of trees right next to a river: beautiful. We had our ramen and sausages for dinner, we got a good night sleep with our natural noise maker aiding to our dreams. A funny note, was that I’ve determined to pray for me to be healed of my cursed sleep talking, for I have been doing so much of it while I’m here…or at least I guess I could have been doing it for a long time it’s just that I haven’t shared a room in some time so I just haven’t anyone witness to me doing it. Anyway, that night I had dreamed that I was in trouble or stuck or something and I was yelling passionately and desperately for help….well, I was tangled by my sleeping bag and my face was pressed up against the tent and I was saying help like a drunk 90 year old lady. My tent mate Beka, sat up and asked me what was wrong and I woke up then and said nothing my face was just in the side of the tent and went back to bed. LOL!! However, the next morning I had hoped that it hadn’t really happened, however someone asked if someone had heard someone crying out for help….well then I had to confess!! So, funny and so embarrassing all at the same time...it is of course never going to be forgotten so now we all use a fun joke say “Help. Help me.” In a groggily and drunk kind of voice. It’s funny.
Saturday was a great day! It was hard at times. We hiked a total of 18 miles that day. That morning as we were walking along I had some good quiet time just dwelling on some scriptures that I had copied down on some note cards and then just conversing and seeking God and feeling so close to Him as I was hiking along and in the midst of nature. A cool thing happened that day. During that time that I was talking back and forth with God I was asking Him for clarity and direction for my future. Like Him breaking through the clouds and speaking to me clearly and directly with what, where, when and how for my life. That afternoon we had stopped for a few minutes, and then when we got going again, my eyes started burning and then it turned into like my eyes were being stabbed with hot pokers, whether I blinked or kept them open. I was pretty much struck blind! I had to hang onto the strap of Anna or Beka for about a half-an-hour or so. Finally, we stopped and they prayed for me, and then Theo piped up saying that he had some eye drops, would I like some….ummm…yes please. Got them in, and after a few minutes so much better! I was able to get along without the guidance from any of my friends. Such a relief. Well, I had a revelation. God answered my prayers about direction for my life it just wasn’t the answer I was expecting: interdependence on and in Him. That I need to throw away my pride, grab ahold His hand and walk step by step with Him leading the way. Because without Him I am and will be blind and won’t be able to walk the path before me without someone leading the way, and the best Trail Guide will lead the way if I just surrender to His expert direction! : )
That night we found an awesome campsite in the midst of these awesome woods and we were surprised by a lovely meal of lasagna, salad, bread and strawberry meringue dessert. Provided by sweet Katherine and her husband Wade (she was our first week lecturer). They hiked down into our camp site and brought us dinner! It was such a treat after hiking 18 miles that day. Sweet bliss. “Little did I know…” (Stranger than Fiction anyone?!), I had been asleep for about an hour and I woke up not feeling the greatest…..long story short….I ended up throwing up about 30 times within 10 hours time. M-I-S-E-R-A-B-L-E. After I got sick the first time, I was up for about an hour or so and then I was feeling ok, so then I went back to bed for an hour at most….which by the way being sick and camping are very inconvenient especially when you’re trying to quietly get out of your tent=impossible. Anyways, on my way up the path to get away from the campsite, I notice Sarah sitting and reading, didn’t think too much of it however because I was busy getting up the path so I could puke my guts out again. Well, after I had my go of it, I was sitting and resting up against a tree, contemplate on a scale of 1 to 10 how miserable I was, but also praising God that at least I was throwing up and not having problems on the other end of things. Then I was also thinking that at least I was the only one sick I would be able to get through it and press on, when these stupid thoughts were passing through my tired and pain riddled mind, I see a flash light coming up the path and hear this soft crying, I have officially labeled it a “mercy, misery” cry. It was Sarah, I was worried about her and feared that I had disturbed her so I crawled/walked down to her and I asked her what was wrong, and in her sweet British accent saying that she had been worried about me because she had heard me earlier and just now and that she wasn’t feeling well herself and then she promptly turned to the right and threw up. Well. I led her gently up the path to the tree that I had befriended and we sat down contemplating our plight…then I got sick….then I sat down again. She wanted to wake someone, I didn’t want to bug anyone, since I figured that “what could they do?”, but since Sarah was sick too, I figured I guess we better make one of the leaders aware of the situation. Poor “Ding” she was up the rest of the night with us. She got our sleeping mates and sleeping bags and she witnessed me in my worst state, moaning in a fetal position, or sitting rocking back and forth with my head on my knees and the kneeling forward getting sick behind a tree, then she would stroke my hair and prayed and sang over me. (Sarah got sick one more time) But then we finally drifted off to sleep for an hour or two. I was the most pathetic, disgusting mess that was left with no dignity at this point. I woke up with Ding looking worriedly at me and asking me how I was doing, and then John came over. I truly was mortified in being in such a position, of being so pathetically miserable. I felt so bad about being sick on this trek, and he was so very reassuring. I was obviously in no condition to go hiking that day. However, we still had to trek about a mile or so up to a road where Sarah and I could get picked up by Corbin. It was the hardest and most agonizing mile that I have ever had to hike. Corbin picked us up (he had been sick twice during the day on Saturday and has some other health problems, so he stayed at Katherine and Wade’s house where one of our cars were parked, so he then had the vehicle in which to pick us up with) I was completely drained and not feeling the greatest at this point, I got in the car and drove the rough dirt road for all of three minutes and had Corbin quickly pull over and thank goodness I was able to open the car door; he then determined that I needed to go to the hospital after that. So, we did. All they told me was if I didn’t get better I was to come back and she prescribed me some anti-nausea medicine, which was useful. We then went to the store…we looked like a bunch of Zombies on drugs….got the prescription filled, bought a bag of ice (best .99P that I ever spent in my life) and then a bottle of water and sprite and cups. I then proceeded to suck on the ice all that afternoon and evening. We then had to hang about the camp site that the team was going to trek because we had the money bag and some other of their supplies, at this point they were all hoping that we’d camp with them and then continue to trek the next day, but alas the Dr. had told me that I wasn’t supposed or rather shouldn’t continue on. With that news I was very, very disappointed. Anyway, at the camp site we decided that Corbin would drive us 2 ½ hours back to Stanely House and stay there until Tuesday morning. Just so we could get rest and recoup. We puttered back home, and promptly got “tucked” in bed by Sandra and left with cups and numbers to call if we needed anything. Then slept for 12 hours. Thankfully.
As you can imagine when I woke up I was still physically not well, but then I was plagued with such disappointment in myself. I had been looking so forward to this trek and the challenges it was going to have in store…I got challenges, just not the ones I was envisioning. You see, this is yet another instance where it is proven, “Oh be carefully little mouth what you pray.” Because just on that Friday morning, I was praying that God would really keep me and make me humble…..I guess I hadn’t realized how much pride He needed to work out of me! For I was completely helpless and couldn’t rely on my own physical strength, I wasn’t going to be able to finish the trek and say that “I” had completed such an incredible feat. I hadn’t realized what such an independent person I was until this trek, I guess it was something that God wanted to show me and correct in me, for He made a point to work it in my life during this trek! I’m doing much better, but I know that I will be continuously surrendering it. I had lost all my dignity with getting sick in front of all my team mates and not getting to finish the whole trek with them. I was stripped of my pride, but also of my self-image...in a good way. There is all sorts of things that God further worked on me from this time, and is still working in me, I don’t think I will soon forget it.
Alas, we (Corbin, Sarah, and I) drove back over and down into east England to meet up with the team, where they trekked right outside of Lindisfarne, Holy Island (The Island is called Lindisfarne, the town on that Island is called Holy Island). Where we had a sweet reunion, I had missed my fellow team-mates so very much, and thankfully it was mutual! We hiked the last mile or so with them…it was slow go, but we made it! It absolutely beautiful getting to walk on the “bottom of the ocean” before the tide came in and made it an Island once again!
I have pictures on facebook of the parts of the trek that I was on! 
The time on the Island is for a whole other post, which I will make it separate….coming soon!